Plan for 4wd storage drawers

[Velvettte]

Hi to all,

I'm wondering if anyone has plans for (or knows where to get plans for) making storage drawers to insert in the back of a nissan pathfinder.

This is my first post here, so am not sure whether I am posting in the right place :D

Cheers
Violette

[dazzler]

Hi

You could try over here;

4wdmonthly.com.au and overlander.com.au

These are dedicatd 4wd sites and there have been a few home installs documented.

They seem to lose a lot of storage space when they fit them though:(

Good luck

[Velvettte]

Thanks for that, I will check them out. I do quite a bit of little woodowork projects and a friend has asked if I could make it for him, so I figure I would give making a bigger item a go!
Cheers

[dazzler]

Most are square steel framed usually 25mm square x 1.6mm wall with mdf used for the top and drawer fronts.

I will have a search and link if I find them.

cheers

[Graham99]

Hi there,

With the proper draw units coming in at $2500 I figured I could come up with a unit at a fraction of that price for my 4x4. This one will go into a Holden Jackaroo SE 2002 and uses the cargo area seat anchor points to hold it in place. Material would be 12mm Plywood.

The fridge atop the drawer unit is a Waeco CF50 on a fridge slide. Like the Pathfinder the Jackaroo does not have a lot of room. The advantage of the drawer unit is for things like recovery gear.

Please PM me if you need any more help. If you dont have it, download Google Sketchup (free) to view the file.

Regards
Graham

[Wild Dingo]

Graham if I were you Id make the top with flip up lids and section the drawers a bit so you dont have a whopping great draw...

Ive considered making something for the effy along those lines... only with the tailgate end as a tool and spare (spare is like the ones on the thing BIG buggars and dont fit the spare area its meant to so rides in the back) box slide out lift up top to access the tools and tyres the rest being lift up storage areas where the area itself is able to be lifted out along with the back section of the top thus could be able to use it with just the back half if needed or just the front if needed that way... also considered making storage areas suitable for the chainsaw instead of a tool box or both since the effy has a larger tray area than those so far shown... and Ive given up on learnin ketchup its just too flamin confusing for me to get a grip on so I cant show a pic of what I mean :C

It would have to end up flat on top to sling a matteress in for trips away but slide out and lift up is the way to go just not so large... remember you will store stuff in there and that stuff is gonna weigh specially as you store more stuff in there than you first intended which you will cause your a bloke an blokes cant help themselves :2tsup:

But for now Im trying to figure out how to install the new ubeaut engine crane I bought the other day onto the thing so it swivels will have to definantly beef up the tray with some metal to support it but imagine the logs I can find and bring home with a 1.2 ton crane on the effy!!! WHAHOOO!! oops sorry getting ahead of the thread :doh:

[Graham99]

Hi there,

I would definately section the drawers as you say it is easier to have smaller sections rather than one big drawer. I would be using one of the drawers for tools and recovery gear, the other one would be for other camping gear. The Jackaroo does not have a lot of room like a Cruiser does so most of the bulky but light crap would end up on the roof.

The main issue would be sourcing heavy duty drawer slide rails so that the drawers can handle the weight. The rest of it is a no brainer. I will be building to this plan in time for the spring.

Persevere with Sketchup mate, watch the video tutorials, it's the easiest way to communicate an idea I have come across yet.

Regards
Graham

[Burnsy]

I actually have a MDF set for my 80 series. They are fully carpeted and look like the $2500 ones. No sliders the draws just slide on the MDF base and this is not a problem. Would not like to get them wet and they are not super rigid when out of the car but when fitted they are great. They also have a flap hinged onto the edge closest to the front of the car with another hinged flap attached to the first flap so that it can be folded forward to make the floor all the same level if the rear seats are folded up or removed (the second flap acts as a leg). Because there is just the two of us we often remove the rear seats when we go away and with the flap folded down we can roll out the swag and sleep in the back if we choose.

[Yonnee]

I've got plans in my head for a set of drawers in my Pajero. Utilising a 25mm sq. RHS frame and small roller bearings, the only thing I'm having trouble with is how to stop the drawer from coming completely out once installed.

[Christopha]

I made drawers for the back of my Navara from 13mm exterior ply. I basically made a box with a divider up the centre then made two boxes which fit inside the two compartments. The exterior "box" and the "drawers" are glued together with epoxy like a boat so not only is the ply waterproof but so is the glue. In fact if you clamped or screwed the drawers together you would have a very blunt bowed canoe. ;) For drawer slides I used that nylon stuff they make slides for boat trailers from as it can be cut, planed, turned etc etc with woodworking tools. I thicknessed 8 strips and screwed them under the drawers and on the bottom of the "box" so they slide against one another. Occasionly (about every 20,000kms) I squirt a little silicon spray on the slides..... These drawers have now done nearly 120,000kms , a lot of it off road, they are used daily as tool boxes ( I am a chippy) and when bush they hold a lot of "stuff" including recovery gear, compressor, tools etc etc and they are in as a good a nick structurally as they were when originally built. They have had a hard life and could do with a cosmetic update but have done a great job and they will last a damned long time yet!

[Graham99]

Hi there Christopha,

Your method of construction sounds exactly like my proposition above. The plastic that you are referring to is UHMWPE (Ultra High Molecular Weight Polyethylene) I'm a plastics engineer yet did not think of using the stuff. In the application that you are using it for it will outlast the rest of the drawer unit. Good thinking.

I think I will go the same way for my drawer unit. I reckon I can be built and installed for under $500.

Regards
Graham

[T-Bone]

G'Day all
I came across this site by accident.
Your Post on Storage boxes is really interesting.

I have just completed a project just like this for under $500, using Gal tubing, 12mm Ply, and felt from Clark rubber and ofcoarse some additional hardware.
Please feel free to look at my project on WWW. australia 4wd.terracan chat.and look for T-Bone's Post " My rear end project.
I hope you like it.
Regards
T-Bone:U

[starwagon4x4]

Hi Evereyone
I made a set for my 4x4 mitsi van. i got these great bearing slides from a guy in devonport Tas and he is on ebay. they come in all sizes from 400mm to 1100mm. I made my drawers from 12mm ply for the base frame and 9mm for the drawers. it was very time consuming and also very rewarding. took almost a week doing 6hrs everyday. but a fair bit of thinking to get it right. i have 2 drawers at the rear and a fridge drawer out the side door of the van. and all covered in carpet. its creat to use and holds heaps.

Happy woodworking

[Lyle]

I got a set of drawer slides for a workbench I am making. The drawer will be just a mount for my WDS-400 which weighs 50Kg. The slides are rated to 100KG so any timber I put through the sander won't overstress the slides.
Check out this site for other good 4WD stuff.
Cheerio.
http://www.ovesco.com.au/

[chorikx]

Hi Guys,

This is the first woodworking/metalworking project I've done. I was inspired by Graham99's SKP file and decided to make one for my own trip rather than purchase.

I posted this page on my website which is slowly getting established before I hit the road in April. I have pictures of the final product, and you can download the SKP file as well.

4WD Drawer Storage | Driving Around Australia (http://www.traversingaustralia.com/improvements/4wd-drawer-storage/)

Chris

[joshj]

Hi there Graham, would you be able to send me your plan for your draw?
I will PM my email address.
I'd really appreciate it.
Cheers
Josh

[Big Shed]

chorikx was last on the forum in 2010, so maybe it will be a bit hard to contact him, but you can try sending him a PM.